The Distraction Index

@sgharlow
6 Followers
8 Following
27 Posts

The Distraction Index publishes a frozen, immutable weekly record of U.S. political events scored on two independent axes:

๐Ÿ”ด A-Score: Constitutional damage (governance harm, reversibility, precedent)
๐ŸŸ  B-Score: Distraction/Hype (media amplification, strategic manipulation)

When damage is high but coverage is low, that's a red flag.

59+ weeks of data ยท 1,500+ scored events ยท 210+ smokescreen pairs detected

Independent ยท Ad-free ยท Open source
Created by @sgharlow

Websitehttps://distractionindex.org
GitHubhttps://github.com/sgharlow/distraction
Methodologyhttps://distractionindex.org/methodology
Weekly Reporthttps://distractionindex.org/week/current

Event spotlight: "SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes"

Constitutional damage: 80.8/100
Distraction score: 36.3/100

Getting attention, but is it the right kind?

https://distractionindex.org/event/087acadb-0730-44a4-bc79-9b75b5e189c9

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes

Congress is considering the SAVE America Act, an election overhaul bill that would require Washington state voters to mail photocopies of official IDs with ballots, raising concerns about election administration procedures.

The Distraction Index

The Distraction Index tracks 15+ events per week, scoring each for constitutional damage AND media distraction.

60+ weeks of data. 1,500+ scored events. Open source. No ads.

Built because democracy needs data, not just opinions.

https://distractionindex.org
Subscribe: https://distractionindex.substack.com

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

The Distraction Index

Weekly civic intelligence report tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions. See through the noise.

The Distraction Index

Week of 2026-03-15 by the numbers:

13 political events tracked
Avg. constitutional damage: 23/100
Avg. distraction score: 40/100
1 high-damage events
8 high-distraction events

Data doesn't lie. https://distractionindex.org/week/2026-03-15

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

Week 64: Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026 (Live) | The Distraction Index

The Distraction Index for Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026. Live updates throughout the week. Tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions.

Smokescreen alert:

While "US-Iran Military Conflict Escalates" dominated headlines (distraction: 92.8/100)...

"SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes" flew under the radar (damage: 80.8/100, coverage: 36.3/100).

This is the pattern. https://distractionindex.org/smokescreen

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

Smokescreen Map โ€” Week 64 | The Distraction Index

Week 64 Smokescreen Map: distraction-to-damage pairings with displacement evidence. See which distractions are covering for real democratic damage.

The Distraction Index tracks 13+ events per week, scoring each for constitutional damage AND media distraction.

59 weeks of data. 1,500+ scored events. Open source. No ads.

Built because democracy needs data, not just opinions.

https://distractionindex.org
https://distractionindex.org/methodology

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

The Distraction Index

Weekly civic intelligence report tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions. See through the noise.

The Distraction Index

Event spotlight: "SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes"

Constitutional damage: 80.8/100
Distraction score: 36.3/100

Getting attention, but is it the right kind?

https://distractionindex.org/event/087acadb-0730-44a4-bc79-9b75b5e189c9

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes

Congress is considering the SAVE America Act, an election overhaul bill that would require Washington state voters to mail photocopies of official IDs with ballots, raising concerns about election administration procedures.

The Distraction Index

1 events scored as high constitutional damage this week.

- SAVE America Act - Election Administration Changes (80.8/100)

These are the events that matter most โ€” and they're often the ones getting the least coverage.

https://distractionindex.org/week/2026-03-15

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

Week 64: Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026 (Live) | The Distraction Index

The Distraction Index for Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026. Live updates throughout the week. Tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions.

Every week, the Distraction Index scores political events on two axes:

1. How much constitutional damage they cause
2. How much they serve as distractions

When damage is high but coverage is low, that's a red flag.

https://distractionindex.org/undercovered

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

Undercovered โ€” Week 64 | The Distraction Index

Week 64 Undercovered: high constitutional damage events receiving disproportionately low media attention.

Tracking: energy_policy, environmental, California

"Trump Administration Orders Restart of California Oil Pipeline" scored 22.7/100 for constitutional damage this week.

The Distraction Index monitors 12+ events weekly across dozens of policy areas.

https://distractionindex.org/week/2026-03-15

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

Week 64: Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026 (Live) | The Distraction Index

The Distraction Index for Mar 15 โ€“ Mar 21, 2026. Live updates throughout the week. Tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions.

The Distraction Index tracks 12+ events per week, scoring each for constitutional damage AND media distraction.

59 weeks of data. 1,500+ scored events. Open source. No ads.

Built because democracy needs data, not just opinions.

https://distractionindex.org
https://distractionindex.org/methodology

#DistractionIndex #Democracy #ConstitutionalRights #CivicTech

The Distraction Index

Weekly civic intelligence report tracking democratic damage vs. manufactured distractions. See through the noise.

The Distraction Index